Tanauan City—The PONY Asia Pacific Zone Mustang-9 and Mustang-10 Championships gets going today (Thursday) at Tanauan City Sports Academy with host Philippines seeking to cash in on home field advantage to boost its twin bid for the titles and berths to the coming World Series.
The PH Mustang-9 team look to continue its winning tradition while the Pinoy Mustang-10 squad aims to wrest the crown back after its unexpected loss to Indonesia in last year’s edition in Singapore.
Winners of the May 31-June 2 meet hosted by PONY Philippines headed by Tot Baseball president Boy Tingzon and co-hosted by Tanauan Mayor Tony Halili will represent the zone in the PONY International Mustang-9 World Series scheduled July 27-30 in Walnut, California and the Mustang-10 World Series on Aug. 3-6 in Youngsville, Louisiana.
Before plunging into action at 10 a.m., the PH, Indonesia, Vietnam and guests teams from Tanauan attend the opening ceremonies at 9 a.m., with Halili and other local executives expected to welcome participants with the famous Filipino warmth and hospitality. Rodolfo “Totoy” Tingzon, the father of PH youth baseball, is also expected to grace the opener to inspire the youngsters.
The Filipinos brace for a tough challenge from vastly improved Indonesian side in the 9-year-old play of the event presented by HMR Trading Haus and Loro Sports.
“We have a good chance considering we’ve been the Asian champions in Mustang-9 since the establishment of the tournament in 2015. But Indonesia has been slowly catching up in terms of skills and knowledge of the game because of Japanese pitchers,” said Tingzon.
The home squad is out for redemption in Mustang-10, a division it dominated from 2012 until it fell to an Indonesian ambush in 2017.
“We’re fielding a stronger team than last year and they’re more determined than ever to bring out their best and play in front of their home crowd,” said Tingzon.